Egypt - 9/18

So this is really my last horra. Decided to take another trip before I head back. Cairo is another verision of Lagos! Gosh the husslers there. They call it bakshish (tip) there. And they will hussle u if u don’t give them enough. Everything is a bargain.. so tiring! We went during ramadan, so we were not hassled that much by the young boys. Egypt is such a conservative culture, but they are also very modern in media (a lot of arabic movies come from egypt). The young girls cover their hair, but wear tight tops under their long sleeve undershirts. So it's quite a paradox.

I also went to Sinai. Sinai was controled by Israel, but turned back over to Egypt after the war. So this area is very sensitive. One has to show their passport every 20 miles. This area has a nomadic tribe called the Bedoiun. They live in the desert and know how to travel accros for trade/water. We visited the mountain that moses supposedly got the ten commandments. That was a pilgrimage. Starting at 1am, we had to hike for 4 hours in the dark to the top. And it was freezing on top. But I can see why this was a good place to connect to God. The view is amazing view! The beaches of Sinai are also so amazing, ocean meets the desert. And they have Russian food there. I definately suggest going to Sinai over Cairo.

CAIRO

SINAI

Climbing mount moses!

Goodbye - 9/15

Going away party!

My bestest friends in Sudan. Laura and Michelle

Safari - 8/23

August 23rd

SAFARI
So this is my last big horra! I have decided to squeeze in one more vacation. I have always wanted to safari. I went to safari in Kenya (Masai Mara and Lake Nakuru). The tour company gave us a good price, so why not. The car was your typical chityy chitty car. At times the car couldn’t go faster than 30miles per hour on a nicely paved highway. Patience.

We drove to Masai Mara which is in the far west side of Kenya. It took about 6 hours which was okay time. We spent 2.5 days there. The valley’s and hills are really beautiful. I don’t think I could quite capture the vastness on the camera. It went on for miles and miles. The interesting thing was not just that there were animals, but that they were roaming freely and we could get so close to them. It was clear that we were the visitors and everything was according to their rules. There were hundreds of thousands of wilder breast (like antelope / buffalo). It’s like the old western movies of the wild horses. And we get to experience them as they move from one plain to the other, crossing rivers, sometimes getting eaten on the way. And there was no trash! It was sooo free from plastic bags, tin cans etc. I loved it.

We also got to visit a Masai village. I don’t really enjoy “people watching” in their homes. But I did want to meet the locals and experience their life. They did a dance for us and my friend Marty, got to do the “Masai jump”. It was quite funny watching an american from Mississippi in a group of Masai men. He was a good sport. One thing to know, Masai are good business people. They take you for a tour inside and when you come out, the trinkets are out there waiting for you. It’s hard not to buy anything. They also showed us how the make fire from rubbing a soft wood on a hard wood (video below). Very cool.

One of the Masai men took us for a hike to the mountains on the hill. It’s a bit dangerous to walk around by oneself because of all the wild animals, but I felt safe with the Masai. They really know how to live in the wild. He had an actual spear, as u can tell I was very impressed by that. We went to Lake Nakuru and were able to see the pink flamingos. It was also pretty, but a lot smaller. It took us about 8 hours to get to Lake Nakuru from Masai Mara. Apparently is should take 4 hours. It was quite difficult to sit in the car that slow. But patience is a virtue, so I practiced.

MOMBASA

We then went to Mombasa which is on the far eastern part of Kenya. I actually found a holistic yoga retreat center by chance. Quite funny. So I had yoga almost every morning. The teacher was actually pretty good. And they told me that they have been getting most of their clients from Sudan. I’m not surprised; all the expats in Sudan are exhausted. We stayed right off the ocean. One of our friends didn’t know how to swim, all took turns trying to teach.. all very earnest… but vastly different styles and instructions. But she pulled through and was able to swim to the deep end! The little things. We even had some monkey visitors that ransacked the honey and food stash. They were quite bold, not afraid of us at all. But we finally shooed them away. I lost my phone, forgot my wallet in Nairobi, lost my earring which I have been wearing for 10 years. I wondered if I was being prepared for something hugamungus. I decided to just enjoy my remaining days. Easy to do in mombasa.

Fall in SS - 8/15

August 15th

You know layoffs are really hard. Michelle and I take turns feeling sad. I think everyone is also sad. It was hard to work and live with my colleagues, and I have had some moments where I questioned my decisions to come to Sudan. But now that I am leaving, I only feel sadness. We have become a sort of family. I will miss the people most!

Some profound poetry from ur truly! :-)

Wind softly blows the fall leaves
The calmness is filling
World stands still
Joy and laughter flow away
Grieving
No regrets
Knowing everything will be okay

Closing - 8/5

August 5th

Being sure of something is like pinning down the wind. How does one start on one path and end up on a completely different path.

So not a day after we returned from our vacation, actually in transit through Nairobi, we got some sad news. Our program is closing early. Our funder decided that they are going to scrap all the programs in the southern part of the country and move them up north to the border states of Southern Sudan. They are scrapping 34 programs (us included). In one breath, our small cloister is burst apart.

The border states still has some small fighting and unrest due to the dispute of the border line and oil. If there is unrest at the border, there is even a harder time to stabilize the country as a whole. As you can see, this is much bigger than all of us. As a result, I will be leaving Sudan much earlier than I anticipated. I am very sad to leave.

Zanzibar - 8/3

August 3rd

I went on vacation 3 weeks ago to Zanzibar Island with my friends (Khary, Michelle and Michelle's friend June). It was glorious. I didn’t know Africa had such treasures. The sand is so white and the water is so blue. I also got scuba license. That was quite a feat. We thought the whole thing would last 2-3 days, but it lasted 5 days. My friend Michelle, who organized this trip, didn’t know she would have successive panic attacks during scuba. It was funny and sad to watch. But she accepted this was something she could pass on. If you know anything about her, she never backs down on a challenge.

Capetown - 5/21

May 21st

My boss noticed that I was not looking so good. I was strongly urged to take my first Rest and Relaxation vacation. Now I see why these trips are necessary. I decided to visit South Africa (SA). I have an old friend Capetown. I stayed with her family which included a young boy of 3 called Boyou. SA was quite cold; it was the middle of winter. Capetown is glorious. And Boyou was such a joy. It is sooo much energy to take care of a child, but at the end of the day I had good energy. I have to say that the my friends helped me have a great time.. by letting me not plan a thing. And Boyou was the best part of it.

I also went to visit the Townships; area where black people live. I went to Mazapulele Township, right next door. The xenophobic attacks also occurred in Capte town, however I heard that the Mazapulele township elders really organized the community. They were able to convince the people who looted the foreigner’s homes to return their property. And they also got the community to really reconsider their position of violence. It was quite a exciting to hear. A people who have experience so much violence, yet choosing a different action. The situation in the townships is not always so pretty due to the poverty of blacks in general. One good thing though, is that these homes have running water and electricity. However the townships are not large enough and there are many slums. I saw acres and acres of slums on the way to the capetown airport. Quite disheartening. I hope that SA can really begin to bridge the gap for poor SA's.

A few scenes of my time in capetown. If you have a chance, I think it is a beautiful place to visit.

Muzaphalele township

Muzaphalele township (above)

JOHANESSBURG

I also got to visit my friend in Johannesburg. Quite a city. The walls protecting the homes are so high, with electric wires on top. There is a lot of crime in the city, most probably due to the huge disparity between the rich and poor. The city felt very unfriendly. I think it takes a while to feel comfortable here. I got to see the famous SOWETO and Mandela's home from his childhood.

Now back to my live in Juba.